SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The
vegetables that grow at Early Morning Farm in Genoa look the same as the
vegetables that grow 85 miles away in fields at Long Acre Agriculture.

But how they
are grown and the kinds of seeds the farmers use are worlds apart. Early
Morning Farm uses only organic seeds and grows certified organic crops. Long
Acre Agriculture grows mostly genetically modified crops--called GMOs -- using seeds that have been tweaked in test
tubes to keep away pests and withstand spraying with chemicals.

The differences
are at the heart of debate about whether consumers should know if their food
comes from genetically modified sources.

Long Acre
Agriculture has been growing corn and soybeans on its family farm outside of
Utica for three generations. The farm grows
500 acres of corn and soybeans from genetically modified seeds.

The farm, in
Sauquoit, started using genetically modified seeds shortly after they were
approved in 1996 and hasn't looked back, said Vincent Johns, who now oversees
the growing operation.

Johns said
most people who are concerned about GMO don't really understand how they are
used and how little risk they pose.

The GMO
crops are actually better for the environment, Johns said. They reduce the
amount of pesticides he sprays and the amount of fuel he uses because he
doesn't have to go into the fields as often.

Johns
doesn't see the point of GMO labeling. "There's no difference between a GMO or
non-GMO crop," he said. Though his crops are sold for animal feed and
commercial use, he often samples them when he's checking for harvest.

Johns
understands, though, why some farmers want GMO labeling and why some choose to
farm non-GMO and even organic. "It's a business decision. If you have a market
for it, great," Johns said.

Anton
Burkett, who grows only organic crops on 100 acres at Early Morning Farm in
Genoa,has found that market. Burkett,
who's been in business for 16 years on the farm north of Ithaca, said he's
added acres every year to respond to increased demand for his vegetables.

Burkett supports
mandatory labeling. "It's good for the customer to know what they are eating,"
Burkett said.

While the
product he grows might not look different from the one grown on Johns' farm,
the process to produce them is vastly different.

For his
crops to be certified organic, Burkett can only use organic seeds and natural
pesticides.

And he can't
grow sweet corn. His fields are surrounded by GMO corn being grown by other
farmers. Because corn cross-pollinates easily when the tassels are out, there's
no way for Burkett to ensure that his corn isn't mixed with the GMO strain.

Because of
this, the state of Oregon is trying to map all fields where GMO crops are being
grown.

The
prevalence of GMO crops is also making one of the naturally occurring
insecticides he uses less effective over time. Burkett and other organic
farmers use Bacillus Thuringiensis, called Bt, in the soil. It's a bacteria
that's very effective at killing bugs that can destroy vegetable crops.

Burkett uses
Bt in the soil to kill the caterpillars that eat his broccoli crops. But
Monsanto sells genetically modified corn seeds that make the corn grow with the
Bt already in it, keeping bugs at bay while reducing the farmers' work.

Burkett and
other organic farmers worry that the prevalence of Bt will make it ineffective
in the future.